There Must Be Heaven In This Hell That I'm Living
by xXBalorBabeXx
Summary: Port Charles was not the sanctuary they were hoping for, things were steadily getting crazier around Harper Eckert and Brayden Lavery... will things go past the point of no return? (AU from the 2/2/18 episode, OC X OC romance.)
1. Proverbial Straw

_**Three hours earlier… **_

_"Tell me, how crazy does one have to be to spend a year in a mental hospital? How crazy are you now?"_

_The second Harper had heard that, she knew that the constant fighting between Carly and Nelle would never stop… and something inside of her seemed to break as she knew that using a mental breakdown as a weapon against the person who went through it was a completely new low._

_"What happened to me is none of your business, Carly."_

_"Well, I disagree because you're carrying my grandchild, and I care about that baby."_

_"Then back off, because stress isn't good for the baby."_

_"And the baby is an all-purpose excuse for you to do whatever the hell you want. And it's clear from your behavior since you came to Port Charles that you are volatile and your judgment is very questionable. It's not really mommy material, you know?" _

_"So what - what, you're going to take me to court? Try to prove I'm an unfit mother?"_

_"Enough, both of you!" Harper responded after she stood up and walked over, turning to Nelle. "You go clear your head for the baby's sake! Now!" She replied through gritted teeth, Nelle walking off._

_"Harper, you didn't have to intervene-" Carly started to respond._

_"I didn't do it for you, Carly, despite all the things Nelle has done to your family! You suffered a breakdown yourself, nothing justifies being a hypocrite and throwing it in someone else's face! When I confided in you what Scott's son did to me and how it affected me, you said that you'd never throw anyone's mental instability in their face!" Harper replied, Carly taken aback by that… and the blonde narrowing her eyes at the younger woman._

_"You're gonna stand there and call me a hypocrite, you little bitch?!" Carly seethed._

_"You act like that's the first time someone ever told you that. Nelle's no saint but neither are you and you need to stop acting like one. Both you and her need to stop fighting or did you not really expect someone to treat you the way you've treated people over the years?!" Harper responded, standing her ground and Carly trying to slap her but Harper caught her right wrist. "Not a smart move, Caroline Leigh." She replied, Carly yanking her arm away._

_"You may be Jason's long lost little sister but that's only by blood! And you're barely a blip in the Eckert/Spencer family lineage!" Carly hissed._

_"With you as 'adoptive' family, who really needs enemies?! You may look like Lena but that's just about all the resemblance you have of her! How long will it take you to form a plan to try to get rid of me but it ends up blowing up in your face?!" Harper responded before she left, Carly's temper boiling._

_The fighting between her and Nelle wasn't doing anyone any good and Harper had brought up a valid point about the mental breakdown._

_In the elevator, Harper was trying to keep herself calm as she found herself reliving how she was after Logan had abused her._

_And briefly heard him say "Stupid bitch, why couldn't you just shut up?! It's your fault that Carly hates you!"._

_"No! It is not your fault, Harper, you couldn't keep it all held back anymore! Carly's hypocrisy and Nelle's instability are gonna cause more mayhem if not stopped and it's gonna hurt that little baby!" Harper responded quietly before the doors opened and Brayden greeted her with a smile as she walked to him and they kissed._

_But his smile faded to concern when he saw the stress in Harper's face._

_"Carly and Nelle were arguing again?" Brayden asked, rubbing his fiancee's back. _

_"Carly threw Nelle's mental breakdown in her face. I'm not on Nelle's side but after hearing that, I couldn't stand back and let that madness continue." Harper replied._

_"When you told Carly about your breakdown after the hell Logan put you through, I hadn't meant to eavesdrop but I overheard her say she'd never throw anyone's mental instability in their face. That's blatant hypocrisy." Brayden responded._

_"You watch her say to Michael or Jason that she wasn't seeking a fight. That'll be another lie." Harper replied before they kissed and left, deciding to go to the Floating Rib to go get lunch._

_They calmed their nerves after a few drinks with their food… and Mac called a taxi for them when it was clear that both were too impaired to drive…_

**Present time…**

"Only you would manage to unlock a door while drunk without scratching up the lock or door handle… I just hope Jason doesn't find us right now while we're intoxicated." Brayden responded in a slurred tone as he and Harper walked into the apartment that they and Jason shared.

"He wouldn't react favorably." Harper replied before she managed to close and lock the door.

"To us being drunk or to me doing this?" Brayden asked, Harper squealing as she was pulled onto him by her hips.

She was straddling him and they kissed, both undressing each other after Harper quickly stood up, Brayden pulling her back on top of him after sitting down on the couch and lightly kissing her neck… and Harper running her fingers through his hair as she was on her back and he was on top of her, both kissing again.

Harper's pulse was at immeasurable levels as he moved forward, the two losing awareness of everything around them.

She tossed her head back and moaned out as she felt his fingers dig into her hips, the two moving faster once the shockwaves of unadulterated bliss hit them harder.

By the time they crashed from the high they were on, there was nothing left of their voices left after the screams… opening his bright blue eyes, Brayden looked down at Harper, who's hazel eyes slowly opened and she looked up at him with an exhausted smile.

Pulling the blanket off of the back of the couch, Brayden covered both Harper and himself with it and they closed their eyes after another kiss.

And they knew they needed to keep their nerves calm.


	2. Reconnecting Is Never Easy

_**February 7th 2012…**_

_Looking through old pictures of her, Sly, Bill and Finian, Harper was still trying to process that hers and Sly's childhood babysitter had passed on._

_She had told the truth the night of the arrest, that Finian had been acting without thinking when he killed Nancy… and he was let go and they mended things, her and Sly thinking of Finian as a grandfather given that Fred died when they were too young to properly remember him._

_She felt hands on her shoulders and saw Brayden, the two friends hugging each other and his short brown hair a little messy from sleep but Harper didn't mind as her long honey brown and blonde hair was slightly messy too and both were still in their pajamas._

_"I'm really sorry, Darlin'. Finian was a truly one of a kind person." Brayden responded._

_"He was. I just… I guess I always thought that he'd be around a lot longer, despite his advanced age." Harper replied before they heard a knock at the door, Brayden standing up and going to the door before he unlocked and opened it._

_"Cain." Brayden responded._

_"Lavery." Drew replied before he walked in, him and Harper hugging for a few seconds._

_"For once, can you two address each other by your first names? I know I'm only a secretary at the Navy base but try to act like civilians for once." Harper responded, Brayden and Drew nodding._

_"She's right." Brayden replied._

_"She is. We can be civil." Drew responded before Harper picked up the house phone._

_"Luke? You're not off on another one of your adventures, are you?... Well if you do go off on another one, please get back home safely. And… if you can find Lucky, please tell him to call me back. Thank you. Yes, I'll be careful, I promise. Alrighty, love ya too, old man." Harper replied before she hung up._

_"Family?" Drew responded._

_"Yeah. Luke is a bit out there at times but he cares about his family. His children are grown now but he never really stops being a father to them." Harper replied before Drew saw a picture of Luke, Laura, Harper, Lucky and Sly… and Drew smiled._

_But at the same time, it had him wondering where his own biological family was…_

**Present time…**

"Look, when I broke out of that clinic in Russia, the guy who followed me here, Dr. Klein, he wasn't in it for himself. He was working for someone he called "his client". That's who wanted me brought back to Russia."

Brayden rubbed his eyes when he heard that, knowing that it was Jason… and rightly guessing that Drew and Sam weren't too far behind.

"And you're sure Harper found out who this traitor really is?" Sam asked.

"Harper, wake up, Love." Brayden responded quietly, Harper doing so… and hearing them.

"Oh, damn it!" Harper hissed, both getting dressed again and going to hide.

They heard the door open and footsteps… and Jason, Sam and Drew noticed the pillows and blanket on the couch were disheveled and a lamp was broken.

"Alright, out from wherever you're hiding at, you two!" Drew replied.

"Damn it!" Brayden responded before he and Harper emerged from their room, Jason motioning to the messy living room.

"Hiding doesn't work. In the future, please restrain yourselves from having sex on the couch." Jason explained.

"It wouldn't help us if we say we got drunk and didn't really know which room we were in?" Harper responded, Drew turning startled.

"I didn't think that either of you are daytime drinkers, what happened?" Drew asked.

"Carly and Nelle fought at the Metro Court. Carly provoked her, confronting her about her stint in a mental hospital and tried to bait Nelle into slapping her. I stopped Nelle from hitting her and told her to go cool off, then I explained to Carly how nothing justifies that and reminded her of her saying that she'd never throw anyone's mental instability in their face and that she and Nelle need to stop fighting or did Carly not really expect someone to treat her the way she's treated people over the years… then she tried to slap me. I stopped her and then she went off at me saying that I'm only your long lost little sister but that's only by blood and I'm barely a blip in the Eckert/Spencer family lineage! Nelle's no saint and I know Carly's your best friend, Jason, but that was out of line even for her." Harper explained, Jason knowing that Carly had inadvertently triggered Harper's post traumatic stress disorder.

"I'll talk to her and try to calm her down. But we need your help with finding Henrik. The manuscript we found, the one that was called "the severed branch". The main character was betrayed and destroyed by his son. Do you think the son in the book was Henrik?" Jason responded.

"Yes. Henrik is… is Peter August's real name. I was outside Faison's room, I heard him call Faison 'Dad.'." Harper replied after briefly pausing, Drew, Sam and Jason taken aback.

"Peter works for us at Aurora Media… we hired Cesar Faison's son?!" Sam responded.

"We tried telling you and Drew that Peter isn't who he appears to be-" Brayden replied.

"How do we know that you're not Faison's son and that Harper's just covering for you?!" Drew responded.

"Don't even try it, Drew! Somewhere buried deep in your mind, you know that I'm not related in any way to Faison!" Brayden replied angrily, Harper lightly rubbing his shoulders and back to try to calm him.

"Get out, Drew, now!" Harper responded, Drew leaving and Sam wordlessly following him… and Jason turning to Harper and Brayden.

"I'm gonna give you guys some time to cool off." Jason replied before he left, Harper locking the door after it was closed and her and Brayden embracing each other.

"Why were we ever friends with Drew in the first place?! He's a damn idiot!" Harper responded, Brayden lightly cradling her face in his hands.

"Just breathe, okay? He's not who he used to be and he doesn't want to even try to remember… but he can't keep picking fights with people. Much like Carly can't." Brayden replied, getting Harper to close her eyes and take a deep breath… and Harper opening her eyes as Brayden sat down in the leather chair and pulled her onto his lap.

"Carly is the most selfish, grating, hypocritical, judgmental and shrewish person I've ever met! I… I hate to say this but I don't understand why Jason, Sonny or anyone else haven't run screaming from her!" Harper responded as she rested her head on Brayden's right shoulder, Brayden kissing her forehead and lightly rubbing her back.

"You're most likely not the only person who's said that about her, Love." Brayden replied before they kissed and headed back into their room… and into their restroom before setting up their shower, stripping down and walking into the shower as they kissed.

Harper pulled the glass door to a close, Brayden's arms around her as the water rained down on them.

Jason reached the Corinthos house, Carly letting him in… and closing the door.

"Before you start-" Carly started to explain.

"Harper told me all of what happened earlier. Carly, Harper is my family. And you don't have any right to say that she isn't." Jason replied.

And Carly knew she couldn't lie her way out of this one.


End file.
